A federal appellate court has cleared the way for the Justice Department to publicly release special counsel Jack Smith’s report on Donald Trump’s efforts to undo the results of the 2020 election, although the timing of that release remains unclear.

A separate portion of the document – detailing Smith’s investigation into Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents – appears likely to remain under wraps for now.

The ruling, issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta, came in response to a flurry of emergency filings in which the president-elect and two of his former co-defendants in the documents case urged courts to block the release of any part of the report.

While the decision could still be appealed, the ruling set the stage for a possible release of a thorough public accounting of Smith’s election interference case against Trump days before he is again sworn in as president. It may not happen immediately, however. A lower court judge has barred the release of the report until at least three days after the 11th Circuit decision.

The federal appeals court covering Florida rejected a defense request to block the release of special counsel Jack Smith's final report, but an order temporarily blocking its release from U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon is still in place for now, which would keep the report blocked for three more days absent further appeal.

Donald Trump's former co-defendants in the classified documents case had sought to block the report's release, filing motions with both the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and Cannon, the Trump appointee who dismissed the classified documents case against Trump and his two co-defendants last year. The government's appeal of her dismissal has been pending in the 11th Circuit, though the Justice Department dropped the appeal as to Trump because he will become president again soon and the DOJ has a policy against prosecuting sitting presidents.

On Tuesday, Cannon issued an order temporarily blocking the report's release pending further word from the 11th Circuit and saying the order remains in effect until three days after the circuit decides the defense motion. The DOJ subsequently told the circuit court that, while litigation was still pending against Trump co-defendants Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, it didn't intend to release the volume of the report related to the classified documents case, but that it did intend to release the volume related to the federal election interference case, where Trump was the only person charged.

The DOJ said the circuit should reject the defense motion, set aside Cannon's order, and make clear that the attorney general can allow limited congressional review of the classified documents-related volume of the report as well as the public release of the election interference-related volume.

Thursday's order from the circuit denied the defense motion but said, "To the extent that Appellant [the DOJ] seeks relief from the district court’s [Cannon's] January 7, 2025, order temporarily enjoining Appellant, Appellant may file a notice of appeal from that order."

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.